Voces May Gain Status as Charter 
BY
SARAH MILLER-DAVENPORT

What began as a Winter Term project may end up being added to the list of the College’s chartered publications. The first issue of Voces, Oberlin’s new bilingual English-Spanish paper, debuted on Jan. 14, and the editors plan to have the next issue out by spring break.
The paper was originally Spanish professor Kim Faber’s idea. Sophomore Viviana Westbrook and senior Christina Castellana researched how to put the paper together last semester, and senior editor-in-chief Diana Guillermo took on the task as a Winter Term project. 
Guillermo knew that there would be an audience for a bilingual paper. “I was surprised that no one had thought of the idea before,” she said.
The goals of Voces are to serve as a platform for Latin American issues on campus and to allow students to practice reading and writing in Spanish. The editors are hoping to reach a wider Spanish-speaking audience by distributing copies of the paper in various locations in Lorain County.
Overall, the editors feel that the paper has reached many of these goals, and that so far Voces has been an overwhelming success. “I think it was really well-received by its target audience. I’ve heard almost only positive feedback,” co-editor and layout director Ian Bergman said. “The whole thing started because we thought there would be a lot of interest, and there has been,” faculty coordinator Sebastiaan Faber said. 
“I really see it as very different from other publications on campus. It allows the Latin American community to have a voice,” Guillermo said. 
Many students agreed that Voces serves a long-unfulfilled need for a publication on campus dedicated to Latin American concerns. 
“It’s great that there is a paper to raise awareness for Latino issues on this campus. It’s very important for people who are learning Spanish not only to be able to speak or read it but to understand that it is a culture, a way of life. Students should not forget the purpose of this paper, which is to educate non-Latinos about our issues,” sophomore Kat Fernandez said.
Voces has also generated a lot of interest from students wanting to become involved in the paper. “When I went to the last writer’s meeting. I was very impressed by the list of topics. It was really comprehensive,” said senior Jenny Eisenberg, who is currently writing an article for the next issue of the paper.
Oberlin only has a 2.5 percent Latino population, and Voces editor Viviana Westbrook said she hopes that the paper will attract more Latinos to the College, and also encourage Latino students to stay at Oberlin instead of transferring to other schools. 
“I hope that Latinos on campus will feel less intimidated now that they have an outlet to express themselves,” Westbrook said.
Voces currently receives funding from the Dean’s Office and the editors recently submitted a charter to the student union office so Voces can become a permanent student organization.
While waiting to hear if the charter is approved, the editors are putting together the next issue, and will be accepting articles — either in Spanish or English — until March 12.
Whether or not Voces receives a charter, Guillermo believes the paper has made an impact. “As a Latina, I feel like the Latin American community on campus is trying to make itself noticed and Voces has really done that,” she said.

 

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